From a player's standpoint, the trip to Australia was an outstanding opportunity for them to experience another country. What made it extra special was that these guys have three teammates: James (Hunter), Brock (Motum), and Dexter (Kernich-Drew), who are from that country. And so I think it naturally helps them connect with those guys better, just having a good understanding of their background and where they're from, and a real appreciation of Australia and that country. There were numerous places to see whether it was the Opera House (Sydney) or the Great Barrier Reef (Cairns)...cool places like the zoo...and I think the guys really enjoyed those excursions that we took on, along with the games. I think the games were an experience in themselves as we played in small arenas, but most of the time great crowds with a lot of enthusiasm and I felt like the players enjoyed those atmospheres. Even though they were small crowds, they were fun games.

The Cougars were in Australia for a two-week tour which included four cities and
five games. Each day a different Coug has blogged about his day. Our 12th one
comes from redshirt sophomore Royce Woolridge, a 6-3 guard from Phoenix, Ariz.

After visiting the Cairns Tropical Zoo, koalas have become my favorite animal, I love
koalas. The kangaroos were cool, but koalas are my thing. I want to give a
shout out to all the koalas and my teammate M-Laddy (Mike Ladd, sitting nearby).

It was great to get back on the court and play competitively for the first time in nearly two years, and our first time as a team. The team really bonded on the trip, which was nice with all the freshmen and newcomers. We really got to see how we work together and develop a team identity. We got a little bit of a feel for how we're going to play this year, which is a little faster, so it was nice to try that out. I did discover on this trip that Brock might be one of the nicest (meaning best) white boys I've ever seen play.

Overall I had a lot of fun. I'm glad I got to experience the trip with my friends, my
teammates. I'm really glad I got to go to Australia, but I'm very glad to be
home where I can afford things, like food.

Go Cougs!
Royce Woolridge

The Cougars were in Australia for a two-week tour which included four cities and
five games. Each day a different Coug has blogged about his day. Our 11th one
comes from junior D.J. Shelton, a 6-10 forward from Rialto, Calif.

We had 4 a.m. wakeup in Cairns Thursday (Australia time) then we had a bus ride to the airport to get on a three and a half hour flight back to Sydney. I was thinking, that's long enough and we're still in Australia. My teammates and I were so ready to get on the plane back to the states started. We got to our gate quick because security in Australia is easy, it's nowhere near as extensive as it is in the U.S. Once we were on that flight I slept from start-to-finish, but it also felt like I was on the flight for hours.

On the flight to Sydney I had an aisle seat, but my aisle was full, so I switched to an aisle where I had no one next to me so I could stretch out and get some relaxation on the way back. First I took a nap, I tried to pace myself, I took a nice two hour nap. Then I ate the dinner they served us, I had the chicken. It was good, I liked it. Then I started to watch Forrest Gump and watched the whole thing, which was about two hours. Then I took another nap, listening to my iPod, I fell asleep by the time I woke up it was breakfast. I saw there were about five hours left so I slept the rest of the trip.

When we got to L.A., we had long lines through customs. We had to walk from one side of the airport to the other, then we had a three hour wait at the gate. For the three hours I found something to eat and charged my electronics.

The two and a half hour flight to Seattle went quick, I slept the whole way. I actually wish the flight would have been longer so I could sleep more and didn't have to wait at the gate. Once in Seattle we had a three hour layover. I had the chance to eat Qdoba, which I had been waiting for, and finally had a chance to make phone calls and use my phone.

We flew from Seattle to Spokane, which was easy. Once there we took a long bus ride from Spokane to Pullman. It didn't really matter though at that point because we were so excited to be back.

While in Australia I had a great time with my teammates, the returners and my new teammates. I got a chance to see how they are and bond with them. I had a lot of fun with everyone, including the coaches and everyone on the staff. It was also great to see another country and actually be a part of the culture for a long two weeks. I've never missed Pullman so much, it's good to be back.

Go Cougs!
D.J. Shelton

The Cougars were in Australia for a two-week tour which included four cities and five games. Each day a different Coug has blogged about his day. Our 10th one comes from freshman Bryce Leavitt, a 6-4 guard from Kennewick, Wash.

Go Cougs!
Bryce Leavitt

The Cougars are in Australia for a two-week tour which includes four cities and
five games. Each day a different Coug will blog about his day. Our ninth one
comes from junior Keaton Hayenga, a 6-5 forward from Sammamish, Wash.

Well the last day of the trip was definitely worth the wait. We got to see the Great
Barrier Reef, one of the seven wonders of the world, how cool is that? This
trip has been such a blessing to get to be a part of, everything we did was
awesome but today takes the cake in my book. The day started fairly early, as
far as vacations go, we were up and eating breakfast by 8 a.m. (we played our
final game last night). Right after that we boarded a boat unlike any I have
ever seen, and it was huge. I swear we rode that thing into the middle of the
ocean before we stopped. In reality it was about two hours but it seemed to
take forever and by the time we got to the tiny sand hill of an island I was
ready to get off the boat and into the water. The ride out there was filled
with naps, pictures card games and more naps. Some of the fellas on the team
were definitely out of their element in the middle of the ocean, opting to not
even get into the water once we reached our destination.

About two hours into snorkeling we headed back to the boat for some lunch to refuel
for round two of snorkeling. The food on the boat was surprisingly good and I
definitely feasted more than my share. Unfortunately, after lunch many of the
guys had had enough of the water and the lackluster weather, us hardcore
adventurers headed back out for round two in the water. I would argue that the
second time out was better than the first, that's actually when I saw the
stingray and yes I did find NEMO!

The last part of our adventure took place in the semi-sub, a boat that allows you
to sit down below the water level and see into the reef through windows. During
our semi-sub tour we spotted a sea turtle and several of Nemo's cousins. I
would love to tell you what everyone was doing on the seemingly endless ride
back to port but I am afraid that I was passed out most of the way home. I was
exhausted from the day and I think that many of my teammates used that time to
catch up on some sleep as well. All in all, it was a day unlike anything I have
ever experienced and one that I will never forget. It was a fantastic way to
end a fantastic trip. WOW!

Go Cougs!
Keaton Hayenga

Today was by far the best day we've had down here in Australia. It started off rough with a 4 a.m. wake up call to catch a flight from Brisbane to Cairns. As soon as we landed in Cairns we got some food and headed straight to the zoo. The zoo was what most of the guys were looking forward to the most. There were some pretty cool animals there, we got to feed kangaroos and hold a giant python. We also saw some pretty big alligators and some interesting looking lizards. I'm a big animal guy so I loved holding the python, a lot of guys were scared to hold it, haha. I think the most popular thing at the zoo was the koala bear. We got to hold them and also take pictures with it. We stayed at the zoo for a couple hours until heading to the hotel to rest up for our game.

Even though we lost this game it was an awesome game, it felt like a Pac-12 game. The crowd was really intense and our team showed up to play. We played against one of the best professional teams in Australia, but lost by 5. It was a close game throughout and Brock had 41 points!!! It felt like we were watching greatness. The rest of the team played well also, Mike grabbed a lot of rebounds and Will came in and gave us a great lift off the bench. I wish more of Cougar nation was there, we probably would have pulled it out with the support of our awesome fans. It was good to see Brock's friends and family there they always put a smile on my face.

Tomorrow we head out to the Coral Reef, something that all of us are excited to see. This place is very pretty and exactly like you would picture it. A lot of us are going snorkeling, I think D.J. and Mike are the only ones not getting in the water because they can't swim. I can't wait for tomorrow, it should be nice and relaxing. Our time here is dwindling down and it has been quite the experience. The Australian people are extremely nice, now I see where Brock and Dexter get it from.

Go Cougs,
Reggie Moore

INSIDE COUGARS FOOTBALL VIDEO: Rickey Galvin

Washington State returned to the practice field Monday afternoon, working out in helmets and shoulder pads for just over two hours on Rogers Field.

The Cougars worked through some individual drills and later went through some special teams segments that focused on kickoff coverage and return. A few loud pops seemed to dial the intensity up a notch as WSU moved into 7-vs.-7 where both the offense and defense turned in a couple nice plays. For the offense, freshman wideout Gabe Marks made a couple nice catches, as did Marquess Wilson and Rickey Galvin. For the defense, linebacker Justin Sagote came away with an interception after he broke up a pass intended for Brett Bartolone as the ball bounced off of both players before Sagote snatched it up and raced to the end zone.

In 11-vs.-11, Leon Brooks exploded through a hole for a big gain late in the day. The end of practice saw head coach Mike Leach bring both sides together and once again said the two sides would square off in a best of three in a third-down situatoin. The loser would do a couple up-downs at the end. The defense won the first play, stuffing a third down and four running play but the offense came back with a pair of completions. Quarterback Jeff Tuel found Carl Winston in space to pick up a third and short before Tuel clinched the win by hitting Wilson down the field to convert on a third and long.

The Cougars continue fall camp Tuesday at 2:45 on Rogers Field.

Today we had the day free to go off on our own and explore the Gold Coast. It was a little windy outside but I thought because it was the last time I will be home for a while, I couldn't not go to the beach. After breakfast I caught the monorail across the street to the beach. Some of the other guys hung out down by the pool and others went back to Surfers Paradise or over to the mall to shop. It was cool that the team got to see around where I am from and places near where I grew up.

A lot of the crowd tonight at the game was either my family or friends, which was a nice homecoming to see so many of them come out and support us. The stadium was about 10-15 minutes away from my house so the majority of the stands were full of people I knew. It was a good challenge; they were a lower ranked team but played well as a TEAM. We didn't execute some of our offenses and had lapses on defense at times however overall I think we learned a lot and that was this tour is about, not about being good and winning games now but taking steps forward to win come November, through to March.

Tomorrow will be a busy day as we get up early and travel to Cairns, then have a big game with the Cairns Taipans of the NBL.

Go Cougs,
Brock Motum

Our time in Melbourne was pretty good. We were able to see a lot of the city and cultural things that Melbourne has to offer, like the Old Melbourne Gaol, a Aussie rules football game and the Eureka Skydeck, which I liked the most. We got some amazing 360 degree views of the city and of course we got the win in our first match which was good. Our flight to Sydney was pretty quick besides the hour delay we had to wait on the tar mat. Our first day in Sydney was relaxing and we got to see what the city was like and walk around. I can't wait to see what it has to offer in the coming days.

Go Cougs,
Dexter Kernich-Drew

The Cougars are in Australia for a two-week tour which includes four cities and five games. Each day a different Coug will blog about his day. Our sixth one comes from freshman Richard Longrus, Jr., a 6-7 forward from Oakland, Calif.

I definitely like Sydney a lot, I like it more than Melbourne, it's a great city. I love the architecture, especially on the high-rises. It's great to walk around and get a feel for how everything was built. The opera house was beautiful. It was nice to finally get to go on the tour, because it's one of those things you always see and hear about, so it's nice to see it close up. It was neat to learn about how the opera house was built, architecturally it was very interesting to me, I plan to study architecture at Washington State. It was always interesting hear about the different performances the place holds, from the symphony to Kanye West, it's a wide variety. Sydney, I like a lot, it reminds me a little of San Francisco with all the people walking around, the high-rise buildings and the taxis. It makes me feel a little bit like I'm at home when I'm walking around downtown.

The game today was definitely good for the team. Brock played really well, he had 25 and Reggie had 21. I think we played really hard, but we don't have our defensive principles and plans down yet. Offensively, once we get comfortable, we'll play better. We are still getting to know each other and learning how to play together. The Hawks are a good team, they played well. They're a professional team, so we were playing against a bunch of men, while a lot of us aren't even 20 years old yet. It's not fun to lose, we'd love to win every game...we're competitive. I'm excited to play the next two games and see how we improve, how we respond and just get better.

Go Cougs,
Junior Longrus

INSIDE COUGAR FOOTBALL VIDEOS

Head Coach Mike Leach Post-Practice

Gabe Marks Post-Practice

Washington State worked out for two hours in shoulder pads and helmets on Rogers Field Friday afternoon.

The Cougars worked through their individual workouts before breaking out into one filed working on running offense/defense while on the east field, wide receivers and defensive backs went one-on-one.

From there, WSU worked on punt coverage while the quarterbacks threw fades into trash cans on the east field.

There was a brief 7-vs.-7 with Chester Su'a and Deone Bucannon intercepting passes for the defense.

In the day's final segment, 11-vs.-11, the offense rebounded from a tough Thursday practice with an impressive Friday as the quarterbacks made a number of nice throws throughout the day. Connor Halliday found Gabe Marks and Isiah Myers on consecutive plays for scores.

Similar to earlier in the week, head coach Mike Leach put the ball inside the five yard line for the final three plays. It was the defense that won earlier in the week but it was all offense today as Jeff Tuel found Gino Simone for a score on the first play. Tuel then connected with Bennett Bontemps who dove across the goal line for the score and the offense went to post a sweep as Tuel fired a quick strike to Isiah Myers for a touchdown.

WSU will hold its first scrimmage of fall camp Saturday at 4 p.m. at Martin Stadium with a fan autograph session scheduled to follow from 5:30-7 p.m. Gates to Martin Stadium will open at 3:45 p.m. and fans will be allowed on the field following the scrimmage.

INSIDE COUGAR FOOTBALL: Head Coach Mike Leach Post-Practice

The Cougars continued to mix things up at fall camp, working out on Rogers Field in full pads for an hour before heading down into Martin Stadium for the final hour and a half.

WSU opened practice with some individual segments that focused on technique before splitting off and working on the running game on the east field while receivers and defensive cornerbacks squared off in one-on-one battles on the west field.

Special continued to receive a little more time as the Cougars worked on punt coverage on Rogers Field before going through kickoff coverage in the stadium.

The Cougars held a brief 7-vs.-7 segment before going 11-vs.-11 and eventually another "live" scrimmage. Safety Tyree Toomer had a big hit on freshman wideout Brett Bartolone who held on for the catch and five yard gain. Linebacker Cyrus Coen turned in the best day for the defense, breaking up a pass while dropping back in coverage on one play before chasing down a running back from the backside and stopping him for a tackle-for-loss, one of nicer defensive plays made in fall camp so far.

Towards the end of the scrimmage, freshman cornerback Ray Ford broke up a pass intended for Marquess Wilson. It was a nice play by the Cougars newest addition.

The day ended with field goals as Andrew Furney connected on all four of his attempts from 37, 42, 48 and 52 yards.

The Cougars continue fall camp Thursday at 2:45 p.m.

Since we had an early game today, we relaxed and had more time to sleep in. We ate breakfast and watched film this morning before our afternoon game. The game, we didn't know what to expect because we don't know much about the teams we're going against. We just figured they'd have some shooters. We knew we had to defend, get some stops, we went out there and played hard and it showed.

This trip has been a really good experience, most of the guys, including myself, haven't been out of the country. It's a good experience to see where Brock, Dexter and James grew up. It's been a really great bonding experience. We've gotten to know all the guys better, since we have a whole new team. Especially without our cell phones working, it kind of forces us to get to know each other better.

We have another game tomorrow. The team is supposed to be a good team. We don't know what to except, once again, so we have to focus, get some rest, and come out tomorrow and play hard.

Go Cougs,
Mike Ladd

INSIDE COUGAR FOOTBALL: Xavier Cooper Video

Washington State continued its fall camp with a two-hour workout in shoulder pads and helmets on Rogers Field Wednesday afternoon. Tons of energy throughout the day on both fields.

It was a defensive day as the Cougars worked through some individual drills before going through special teams drills that focused on kickoff coverage and returns.

In 7-vs.-7, Matthew Simmons was the first to tally a turnover, picking off a pass before freshman Taylor Taliulu picked off Connor Halliday on the west field. Minutes later, linebacker Eric Oertel recorded an interception off of a deflected pass and safety Mitchell Peterson later picked up an INT of his own with a diving grab on the east field.

It was more of the same in 11-vs.-11 as the defense opened the segment with a "sack." Tyrone Duckett later caused a turnover by forcing a fumble before head coach Mike Leach dialed up the intensity a little more at the end of the day.

Leach placed the ball at the three yard line and decided the two sides would square off in a best of three plays. The first play saw Jeff Tuel connect with freshman Brett Bartolone for a score but the defense rebounded with a "sack" by Travis Long and a pass breakup in the end zone to clinch the win. The offense did a couple up-downs for losing.

The Cougars continue fall camp Thursday at 2:45 p.m.

INSIDE COUGAR FOOTBALL: Xavier Cooper Video

Washington State continued its fall camp with a two-hour workout in shoulder pads and helmets on Rogers Field Wednesday afternoon. Tons of energy throughout the day on both fields.

It was a defensive day as the Cougars worked through some individual drills before going through special teams drills that focused on kickoff coverage and returns.

In 7-vs.-7, Matthew Simmons was the first to tally a turnover, picking off a pass before freshman Taylor Taliulu picked off Connor Halliday on the west field. Minutes later, linebacker Eric Oertel recorded an interception off of a deflected pass and safety Mitchell Peterson later picked up an INT of his own with a diving grab on the east field.

It was more of the same in 11-vs.-11 as the defense opened the segment with a "sack." Tyrone Duckett later caused a turnover by forcing a fumble before head coach Mike Leach dialed up the intensity a little more at the end of the day.

Leach placed the ball at the three yard line and decided the two sides would square off in a best of three plays. The first play saw Jeff Tuel connect with freshman Brett Bartolone for a score but the defense rebounded with a "sack" by Travis Long and a pass breakup in the end zone to clinch the win. The offense did a couple up-downs for losing.

The Cougars continue fall camp Thursday at 2:45 p.m.

I'm back after our 75-74 victory over the Melbourne Tigers tonight. We started out kind of sloppy because it's kind of new, it was a different game for us more physical and such. But I think we rallied as a team from going down 10 in the first half. We showed that we can fight through adversity pull together and get the win. As for the atmosphere, it was great...it was standing room only and those very loud Aussies seem to love their basketball. After this game I can say I am looking forward to this season and competing with this group of guys I expect big things from this team and will not settle for anything less. I think when the season comes around and people watch us back home they will be very surprised in some of the changes we made and the passion that we play with... it's gonna be a fun year.

And as always, Go Cougs! DaVonte Lacy

We started the morning going to the Hawthorn Football Club (of the Australian Football League) practice facility, Ricoh Centre in Mulgrave. When we arrived we first whent into the gift shop and the one thing I thought was cool was that they had a 'Jordan Wings' poster, but it was of their star player, Buddy (Lance Franklin). I thought that was cool that they posterized him the same was as Michael Jordan and used that marketing technique. We did a little tour after that. The most fun part for the guys was when we got to go on the field and kick the football around. We got to experience how hard the game is. The football is really hard too, I hurt my foot kicking it and slipped once too. But like true Americans, we turned the Australian football into an American football and threw it around. Reggie and I played one-on-one with strength coach Dave Lang as our quarterback (he's not a great quarterback with an Australian football). After their practice we ate with the team and got to converse with a couple of the players, which was interesting. I asked them to compare themselves to an NBA team and they choose the Oklahoma City Thunder. They're a young team with a young star player, comparing Buddy to Kevin Durant. The player I talked with was actually the same age as me, so it was pretty cool.

Go Cougs!
DaVonte Lacy

The Cougars are in Australia for a two-week tour which includes four cities and five games. Each day a different Coug will blog about his day. Our second one comes from freshman Brett Boese, a 6-7 forward from Spokane, Wash.

Today was a very busy, but fun day. We started the day off at the Old Melbourne Gaol and we got to look at the history of the country's most famous jail located in Melbourne and learn a few things about the prisoners. It was interesting to see how they treated the inmates and it was interesting to learn about Ned Kelly, the most famous criminal of Australia. Cell 17 on the second floor supposedly was haunted and people reported they heard voices at night. I went in it, and it definitely felt colder than most of the other cells. It was definitely an interesting experience.

Head Coach Mike Leach

Photo Gallery

Washington State worked out in helmets and shoulder pads for just over two hours on Rogers Field Sunday afternoon.

The Cougars continued to work through a similar practice schedule as the first three, opening with individual position drills before working through some team segments and then moving on to 7-vs.-7 drills.

In 7-vs.-7, freshmen linebacker Jeremiah Allison made one of the best athletic plays so far in camp, leaping to make an interception has he was dropping back into coverage. On the west field, sophomore linebacker Chester Su'a closed out 7-vs.-7 with a pick that he took to the house.

Special teams followed 7-vs.-7 and the Cougars focused on punt coverage, shedding blocks and working on containing the punt returner.

During 11-vs.-11 at the end of the day, again both the offense and defense traded big plays. The defense came up with a couple interceptions and later made a couple stops in a red zone drill. The offense received a couple long runs from Teondray Caldwell, a long pass from Connor Halliday to freshman Gabe Marks for a score, a diving catch by freshman Brett Bartolone and a leaping catch by Ricky Galvin.

The intensity will pick up a little more tomorrow as the Cougars will go full pads for the first time in fall camp. Practice is set to begin at 2:45 p.m.

Today was a long day. It all started Friday afternoon with the travel schedule that had us go from Spokane, to Seattle, to L.A., then finally here to Melbourne for 26 hours of total travel time. Never having been out of the country, the 16-hour flight was difficult for me, but not as bad as I thought it would be. The entertainment that was provided on flight was great, I was able to watch some movies. I'm excited to be in Australia and see a lot of the sites and get to play some games as well. We got a bus tour of the city of Melbourne today right after we landed, where saw a lot of gardens (which we call parks back home) and athletic buildings, to name a couple of things. I got to watch my first Australian Football League (AFL) game today, between Carlton and Sydney. That was interesting...it's quite a bit different from American football. The city was different too, as far as driving and streets on different sides. Although Australia is an English speaking country, I noticed that the lingo is very different from what we're used to. I've been impressed with how nice everyone here is and especially how clean and safe the city is. The streets are very clean and we were able to walk into the AFL game without even being searched. We're all pretty tired tonight, so most of us are going to bed early as we have another big day ahead of us tomorrow, visiting the Melbourne Gaol (pronounced jail), which we drove by today, as well as a team practice.

Go Cougs!
Dominic Ballard

Photo Gallery

WSU continued fall camp with a two hour workout in helmets only on Rogers Field Friday afternoon.

The Cougars worked through a similar format as Thursday, going through individual position segments before moving on to team segments with the defense on the east field and the offense on the west side. From there, they went into a 7-vs.-7 segment where walk-on wideout Mark Urtz made a leaping one-handed catch along the sideline.

On the west field during 7-vs.-7, quarterback Connor Halliday and freshmen wideout Gabe Marks provided the highlight of the day. On a long pass from Halliday, Marks out-jumped two defenders and held on to the ball as he tumbled into the end zone.

WSU then worked through some special teams segments that focused on punt coverage.

In the day's final segment, 11-vs.-11, both the offense and defense made plays but neither side able to gain the upper hand. Quarterback Jeff Tuel closed his day with a touchdown strike to Bobby Ratliff.

In his post-practice media session, head coach Mike Leach announced that cornerback "Raymond Ford is Cougar and we are excited to have him and he just got in today."

The Cougars will add shoulder pads to tomorrow's practice, slated for 2:45 p.m. on Rogers Field.